Man Charged In Chicago Shooting Of 11-Year-Old Girl

Antwan Jones, a 19-year-old Chicago man, has been charged with the murder of an 11-year-old girl.

The victim, Takiya Holmes, was shot by a stray bullet Feb. 11 while sitting in a van in Chicago’s Parkway Gardens neighborhood. She was admitted to the hospital the same evening and died Feb. 13. Jones was identified by witnesses and surrendered to police, according to WLS-TV in Chicago.

Takiya and her 3-year-old brother were in the van with her mother and grandmother when shots rang out around 7:40 p.m., according to witnesses.

Takiya was one of two girls shot within four miles of each other on the same evening. Kanari Gentry-Bowers was shot at a local elementary school about 25 minutes later. Kanari was clinging to life at a local hospital.

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Jones was allegedly attempting to fire upon a group of people who were selling marijuana in a spot that he believed belonged to him, Cook County prosecutors told the Chicago Sun-Times.

“Across the street, (Jones) saw three individuals he thought did not belong in the area and he chose to get a handgun… he chose to shoot at these individuals, obviously we know now he didn’t hit any of them,” Brendan Deenihan, commander of Area Central detectives told the Sun-Times.

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Eyewitnesses were crucial in identifying Jones, and detectives offered a reward for any information. Takiya’s age was also a motivating factor for witnesses to come forward.

“Everyone we talked to, it wasn’t about the money. They were not worried about money,” Andrew Holmes, Takiya’s father, told the Sun-Times.

Takiya was held on life support for four hours so that her organs could be used for transplants. Patsy Holmes, Takiya’s grandmother, was hopeful that Takiya’s kidneys would be a match for a relative, according to the Sun-Times.

Takiya’s shooting is the most recent for the South Side Chicago neighborhood. Two men were killed in separate incidents on the same street in December, according to the Chicago Tribune.